Serena Williams' US Open coach, Rennae Stubbs, chose her compatriot Daria Saville for the WTA Comeback Player of the Year instead of Williams, who she coached this year.
Serena Williams announced her comeback to tennis ahead of the grass season earlier this year, with the Eastbourne International as her first event. She played there and then at Wimbledon, losing to Harmony Tan in the first round of the Grand Slam event.
Many assumed that Williams would continue playing; however, she stunned the world by announcing that she would be retiring from the sport at the US Open a few weeks later.
Some saw it coming, but for the most part, tennis fans were shocked. She played a couple more events ahead of the US Open, but as promised, she retired from the sport at the US Open with a third-round loss to Ajla Tomljanovic.
Despite playing only a handful of matches this year, Williams was announced as one of the players in the running for the WTA Comeback Player of the Year award.
Her final career coach was Rennae Stubbs, a former player who coached her at the US Open. Stubbs commented on the awards on Twitter, picking Daria Saville ahead of Donna Vekic and, obviously, Williams, as a winner for the award, despite coaching the legendary American this match.
"No, it should be Daria... I love Donna, and she had a great come back, but Dasha deserves this one. Dasha had an Achilles and foot surgeries. She’s had so many surgeries in the last 3 years, and what she didn’t his year was incredible!"
These players went on to have successful years, with Vekic winning 28 matches and Saville winning 25 matches this year.
On the other hand, Williams' comeback was a bit different. She played only seven matches and won three, which was a less successful mark than that of her rivals, who were also in the running for the award.